Summary:

The 2017 Jaguar XE is a great-looking sports sedan, with a long hood, short rear and sculpting body lines. Designed to compete with the BMW 3 series, the car comes with 17 inch wheels, upgrade available to 18 and 20 inch. The interior looks just as luxurious, although in a sober style. Seats can be had in leather or fabric. The engine options are wide, with diesels and gasoline engines. The largest is a 340 hp V6 engine and next year a 5.0 liter V8 engine will be added to the line-up.

Lastly, there's a high amount of tech and safety features, all the basic semi-autonomous features are available. Prices start at $34.900 up to $41.700 in the US and around €36.800 up to €55.100 in Europe.

The release of the 2017 Jaguar XE was a great one, since Jaguar aficionados have been waiting for this car since the official photos were released in 2014. The Jaguar XE is a rather regular looking sedan, this is because it is aimed as a direct competitor of the BMW 3 series. Of course, most of the exterior features are still visibly Jaguar, such as the grille, the headlights and the wheels. However, Jaguar is not willing to take on the BMW 3 series only in terms of looks. Jaguar brings a range of different engines, from relatively basic ones to high performance drivetrains, that should be able to tackle high performance BMWs and Mercedeses.

Exterior design

As stated before, the exterior of the 2017 Jaguar XE is a more regular one, to be able to compete with the just as generic looking BMW 3 series. Of course, the cars still emit a sense of ultimate luxury, but their appearance is not a groundbreaking one. Also ,the appearance can be seen as a more toned down version of the sophisticated and distinctive 2017 Jaguar XF.

The basic features you’ll notice right away are the long hood and shorter rear. This, in combination with the Jaguar XF inspired coupe roofline makes the car an unmistakable sports sedan. The body lines of the XE vary from being deep and pointed to soft and curvy, which is a very well executed combination.

The front of the car is noted for the narrow, aggressive-looking headlights and of course the large Jaguar grille. Underneath the grille there are going to be air dams, which can either be quite large or a bit smaller, depending on the trim. Of course, the high performance Jaguar XE S will need the largest available air dams.

The standard wheels on the XE are 17 inch, with optional upgrades to 18 or 20 inch ones. Moreover, the back of the car is just as perfected, with exceptionally wide taillights and fine bumper, one exhaust on each side.

Finally, it should be duly noted that the Jaguar XE will feature some more individual appearances for each trim.

Interior design

At first glance, the interior looks quite sober, although that shouldn’t fool you. The classic, clean look shouldn’t fool you into thinking the interior is indeed sober, because it’s not. The clean interior left out any useless buttons, knobs and embellishments and makes it a serene area to reside in.

There’s a choice of two infotainment systems, a basic and a more advanced one. The basic InControl Touch system comes with an 8 inch touch screen and the more advanced InControl Touch Pro comes with a 10.2 inch screen.

Moreover, there’s a whole range of fabrics and fine leathers in a wide colour pallet available for choice. The dash and door panel inserts can be a gloss black aluminium or modern-day wood veneer. Of course, an advanced ambient lighting package with up to 10 colours comes included in this marvellous interior.

There’s also the option to upgrade the sound system to a Meridian advanced sound system.

Engine specs

To really be able to compete with Bimmer and Benz, the 2017 Jaguar XE should offer at least one powerful engine under the long hood. Let’s see what they came up with.

In Europe there are five different engine options. The first one is a 2.0 liter four cylinder E-Performance diesel engine that makes 163 horsepower. Then next is another diesel engine, a 2.0 liter four cylinder turbodiesel to be exact, which makes 180 hp. All the above engines either come as a manual or automatic transmission, and all come as a rear wheel drive. Only the 180 hp turbodiesel is also available in all wheel drive.

Then, next up are three gasoline engines. The first one is a 2.0 liter four cylinder turbo gas engine that makes 200 horsepower. The same lay-out engine also comes making 240 horsepower and finally there’s a 3.0 liter supercharged V6 engine that makes 340 horsepower. All the 2017 Jaguar XE gas engines are rear wheel driven and have automatic transmissions.

Rumour has it that next year the Jaguar XE will also be available with a supercharged 5.0 liter V8 engine.

Tech specs

Standard tech specs on the base model are Cruise Control with Speed Limiter, Hill Launch Assist, AUX, USB and iPod docking options. Bluetooth audio streaming and phone connectivity are also standard on all models.

Optional tech features are the InControl Touch Pro Pack that comes with navigation and Traffic Sign Recognition en Intelligent Speed Limiter. Also, a rear view camera and parking assistance front and rear, Park Assist features which lets the car steer itself into the tiniest parking spaces and a surround camera system. Finally, there’s a WiFi spot and remote accessing the car’s features.

Price and sale date

The 2017 Jaguar XE has gone on sale all across Europe and the US. Prices start at €36.800 for the lowest trim and the highest trim starts around €55.100 (German prices). Of course, depending on the country where you live, prices can vary.